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Prepared by

RDG Planning & Design

Kadrmas, Lee & Jackson

Final - June 2010

MOUNT RUSHMORE ROAD CORRIDOR DEVELOPMENT PLAN

2 MOUNT RUSHMORE ROAD CORRIDOR PLAN

CONSULTANT TEAM

RDG PLANNiNG & DESiGNPatrick Dunn, ASLA, LEED AP Principal Landscape ArchitectMartin Shukert, FAICP Principal PlannerDavid DahlquistCory Scott, AICPRyan Peterson, ASLA, LEED APIsha BhattaraiBen IwenTommy ThurstonChristopher StaraPaul HuntSonja Carter

KADRMAS, LEE & JACKSONBob Shannon, PE Principal Engineer & Project ManagerRod Senn, PEDavid Mayer, ASLADirk Jablonski, PEGabe Schell, EIT

MAyORAlan Hanks

CiTy COUNCiLMalcom ChapmanAaron CostelloKaren Gundersen-OlsonDeb HadcockSam KooikerRon KroegerLloyd LaCroixPatti MarinsonBill OkrepkieRon Weifenbach

PLANNiNG COMMiSSiONPeter AndersonJohn BrewerGary BrownBarb CollinsFrank EtterJulie GreggTom HenniesDennis LandguthLinda MarchandSteve RolingerAndy ScullKaren Waltman

RAPiD CiTy STAffMarcia Elkins,

Growth Management Dept DirectorMonica Heller, Community Planning DivisionJohn Less

STEERiNG COMMiTTEEGary BrownMarcia ElkinsRobert EllisKaren Gunderson-OlsonMonica HellerMark HoinesDebra JensenDr. Robin LacyNorman NelsonMike PellyBrad RemmrichSteve RollingerTodd SeamanDaniel StatonSuzanne Wilson

ACK

NO

WLE

DG

EMEN

TS

This report was funded in part through grant[s] from the Federal Highway Administration [and Federal Transit Administration], U.S. Department of Transportation. The views and opinions of the authors [or agency] expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the U. S. Department of Transportation.

3

Table of Contents

Page Chapter

7 Planning Process

11 Existing Conditions

25 The Vision

97 Implementing the Vision

4 MOUNT RUSHMORE ROAD CORRIDOR PLAN

The Mt. Rushmore Road Corridor Development Plan: An Introduction Mt. Rushmore Road (US Highway 16) is the traditional

route connecting Rapid City to Mt. Rushmore National

Memorial. Combined with the Interstate 190 spur, this

corridor leads travelers directly from Interstate 90 to

the Black Hills region via Downtown Rapid City, and re-

mains a key business and service district for both resi-

dents and tourists. Maintaining Mt. Rushmore Road as

a strong and viable economic district is clearly impor-

tant to businesses, adjacent neighborhoods, and the

entire Rapid City community. Yet changes in the devel-

opment, transportation, and economic environments

require careful consideration of the image, function,

and potential of this important streets and its setting.

Some of these changes include:

Completion of the Elk Vale Road/Catron Boulevard

loop, providing an alternative, limited access con-

nection between I-90 and US Highway 16 South

around the southeast edge of the city.

Intensive new commercial development along the

I-90 corridor.

Increased awareness of street design issues by us-

ers and expectations by visitors that the regional

experience should begin with gateway corridors.

Continuing evolution in the commercial environ-

ment that places local businesses and indepen-

dent motels at a competitive disadvantage rela-

tive to motel/hotel chains and nationally-branded

retailers.

Land use pressures on residential properties along

the street, resulting in conversion or redevelop-

ment to other uses and deterioration of housing

conditions in some places.

Emerging new opportunities such as medical and

health related development related to Rapid City

Regional Hospital.

Functional obsolescence or conflicts created by

aspects of current street configuration, including

pedestrian access, friction between through and

local traffic, and conflicting turning movements.

The Mt. Rushmore Road Corridor Development Plan

presents a community-based program, initiated by the

city and stakeholders, to re-imagine this important en-

vironment and consider its potential as an important

asset well into the future.

Why ThiS PLAN?

Streets have multiple, complex functions. They are

fundamentally transportation facilities that should help

their diverse users reach their destinations safely and

efficiently. But they are also major public spaces that

affect the visual and experiential quality of a city, and

economic lifelines for adjacent businesses. Streets also

can have unintended negative consequences, such as

becoming barriers that reduce access for some users

or generating noise and traffic impacts that lower sur-

rounding property values.

In the past, Mt. Rushmore Road, as the major arterial

between the city and its unique countryside, has been

an opportunity corridor. Its future can be equally com-

pelling if it provides a high quality urban environment

that integrates the transportation, development, visu-

al, and neighborhood contexts. This plan is a guide to

realizing that potential.

5THE PLANNING PROCESS

ThE STUDy AREA

Map 1.1 identifies the project study area within the

context of the Rapid City. The study area recognizes

the relationship between Mt. Rushmore Road and its

surrounding neighborhoods by extending four blocks

on either side of the corridor from Omaha Street to

Tower Road, incorporating most of the West Boulevard

Historic District. The plan considers both the function

and character of the main corridor and its effects on

the health and quality its environs.

ThE STRUCTURE Of ThE PLAN

The Mt. Rushmore Road Corridor Development Plan is

divided into four parts:

Part One presents the plans overall approach and

describes a process that invited the involvement

of community members.

Part Two describes the existing conditions and

contexts of Mt. Rushmore Road, fundamental to

developing an appropriate plan for the corridors

future.

Part Three presents a unifying vision and devel-

opment framework for the corridor and surround-

ing areas.

Part Four describes techniques for implementing

the plans concepts and recommendations.

Sour

ce: R

apid

City

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esign

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Map 1.2: Study Area Detail

Rapid City Mt.

Rus

hmor

e Ro

ad

Wes

t B

oule

vard

Omaha StreetMain StreetSt. Joseph Street

St. Patrick Street

Cathedral Drive

6 MOUNT RUSHMORE ROAD CORRIDOR PLAN

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7THE PLANNING PROCESS

CH

APT

ER 1

The Mt. Rushmore Road Corridor Development Plan involved stakeholders in framing the goals and directions of the Plan. This chapter includes a discussion of the plans approach and a review of the planning process.

The Planning Process

8 MOUNT RUSHMORE ROAD CORRIDOR PLAN

tions between higher and lower intensity uses can help

the busy commercial corridor co-exist with its distinc-

tive, adjacent historic district. Finally, the relationship

of buildings to the street helps determine the quality of

the corridors environment.

Roadway Improvement Alternatives. Mt. Rushmore

Road as a transportation facility should serve all modes

effectively, and the plan takes a complete street ap-

proach for the overall study area. This approach as-

sumes that movement throughout the study area and

to its destinations be safe and comfortable for all trans-

portation user groups motorists, transit riders, bicy-

clists, and pedestrians. The process begins with a

detailed traffic analysis that considers existing

patterns and defines future needs, and then

integrates transportation system design at

both large and small scales into the

visual and development

environment.

Planning ApproachThe Mt. Rushmore Road Corridor Development Plan is

based on the premise that an economically healthy, ef-

ficient, and visually appealing corridor will benefit the

entire Rapid City community. Within the last five years,

this major community street has experienced both new

investment and deterioration, and its tourist-orient-

ed businesses are experiencing growing competition

from other districts. This plan recommends develop-

ment concepts and public actions that, over time, will

create more attractive commercial and residential en-

vironments for current and prospective residents and

businesses. This is achieved by integrating three ma-

jor components of the study area environment: Land

Use, Roadway Improvements, and Streetscape and

Landscape.

Future Land Use. Mt. Rushmore Road serves a vari-

ety of adjacent land uses and reflects varied character

through its length. Land uses along the street and in

the surrounding study area were evaluated based on

markets and established City goals. Future land uses

will probably not change dramatically from past pat-

terns commercial and mixed use development along

most of the street and residential uses in surrounding

areas. However, change will be most controversial and

critical at the boundaries where these uses meet. Issues